Coming from Cleveland I have a lot of built-in bitterness towards other cities. The weather sucks most of the year in Cleveland, the economy has been bad more than good, there isn't as much to do without having to work to find it and the voters in this state are idiots more often than not. But at the same time, like many other Cleveland natives, I take it personal when people insult or joke about my hometown (or area since I never technically lived in Cleveland itself...that's a whole other blog post in itself). I notice many people from Cleveland are quick to defend it or prove its legitimacy. It is like we have a chip on our shoulder regarding our place of residence. I haven't picked up on that with people in Columbus yet.
We also love our sports in Cleveland. And we have collectively put up with a lot of pain and suffering with our teams. No team has won a championship here since before my generation was even born. We had our beloved football team taken from us. We have had heartbreak just short of getting to a championship several times over in dramatic fashion.
These are things I have blogged before. This time I am venting about another so called "torchered" city. This being Boston.
What prompted this post is an HBO special I watched with my brother about the Brooklyn Dodgers. After watching and seeing how the fans in Brooklyn dealt with even more gut wrenching disappointment than me and my fellow Cleveland fans losing to the hated Yankees in the World Series seven times before they finally won I believe. And I think it went to 7 games more than half of the time. They also suffered through "The Shot Heard 'Round The World" homerun by Bobby Thompson of the New York Giants. I think that was the year they blew a 13.5 game lead as well. And THEY lost there team as well just like my Browns.
Ouch.
Anyway, HBO did a great job of mixing the first hand accounts and emotional music in the background to create a dramatic feeling of support for the Dodgers and their epic struggle. Then came another documentary on the...Boston Red Sox and their "supposed" struggle to win a World Series. The "Curse of the Babe." Their numerous heartbreaks to their bitter rival Yanks. Oh, those poor fans. They had such a difficult stretch of time rooting for their Sox, and Pats and Celtics and Bruins.
When the Patriots began their Super Bowl run earlier this decade I had to hear all about how AWESOME they felt. After dealing with so much they finally were able to get the monkey off their back. They had waited so long to have that feeling. They didn't know what to do with themselves. The demons were exorcised. Life was grand. The sun lit the sky again. Life was worth living. All was right with the world.
And then again when the Red Sox won the Series we had to bear all of this AGAIN with even MORE pomp and circumstance since it was the battered Sox and the Curse was broken.
Apparently the Celtics and Bruins didn't count? The fact that the Celtics were viewed as one of the greatest basketball franchises ever meant nothing. The Patriots had at least made it to the Super Bowl once. The Bruins won the Stanely Cup in recent memory.
Put that aside. What bothers me most is the downright arrogance of the Boston fan. Please. I can't stand your overdramatic, exaggerated "pain." Your rings mean nothing.
Not only do we have to deal with the lack of championships in Cleveland, the ridicule that comes with it, the weather, the bad economy, being the butt of jokes around the country, losing our team we care most about, the conservative voting hillbillies and closeminded types but we don't even get credit for all of this pain. Of course we do if it means jokes and insults will follow. Somehow dealing with lack of success in Boston is romanticized while in Cleveland it is rubbed in our face.
Don't cry for me Boston fan...I'm already dead.
3 comments:
As someone who moved from the midwest to Boston, I've spent the last few years trying to get into the whole Boston sports thing. There are good and bad parts clearly, but the one thing I can say relevant to why people in Columbus shouldn't hate too much is - Bostonians have an incredibly poor college sports culture. The saddest part is they don't even know what they're missing. Give me a state school in a real conference any day over having to cheer for the farce that is Boston collegiate athletics.
Bringing the college sports into the conversation is interesting. You are correct in that Boston has no college sports vibe at all. I mean the best they have is Doug Flutie's miracle Hail Mary. One play. That is it.
Coming from the midwest, I suppose you are a Big Ten fan? Despite some lean years currently, I am obviously a Big Ten guy due to my allegiance to the Buckeyes. Ohio State is consistently among the nation's best in collegiate athletics across the board in addition to football and men's basketball.
Yes, at least in Ohio we have the best of both worlds: Relevant Pro and College sports.
The ACC is a joke.
Come on Huey, we should never associate ourselves with the likes of Beantown and Chitown. We will get ours, and when we do it will be all the more sweet. The national media always fawns over large markets, and we will always be an after thought. Keep your chin up and keep fighting the good fight. Cavs in 6.
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